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Respected local journalist, and life-long Bees fan, Jim Levack, looks ahead to the trip to Orient this Saturday and praises Mark Warburton’s confidence in his squad as we face a testing run-in.

It’s probably a good time right now to take a couple of steps back and take a long hard look at our season to date.

Despite the loss of Uwe Rosler at a critical time in the campaign, Brentford have defied the pundits to pretty much carry on regardless.

An astonishing run of 20-plus games, with barely a dropped point, speaks volumes for the quality in the squad.

They have continued to believe in the ultimate prize, even after the Wolves game might have put doubts in the minds of some fans.

That was followed by a stalemate at Carlisle after which I, were I manager, would have pressed the panic button and “freshened things up” with some new faces. That’s why I’m not the Gaffer.

But that’s where Mark Warburton earned his stripes and banished any fears I might have had that he couldn’t handle the downside of things, however temporary it proved to be.

He didn’t rush out and sign just anyone, because he is happy with his squad, even if – in my opinion – it would arguably be stronger with the likes of Logan and El Alagui offering different options.

He is working on adding to the unit and that may be critical to giving us the edge over our rivals, but he has made it clear he will not bring people in for the sake of it.

After the Tranmere win he said; “We will go there (to Orient) and be the best we can be, and if we are the best we can be, we will be okay.”

And that’s spot on.

It reminded me of something my old man always used to say to me after an exam or football trials… I can still hear his words now.

“Did you do your best, boy?” – ‘yes’, was always the reply. “Well no one can ask any more”, he’d say.

And that’s why, with a manager calm and with belief in his players, with supporters who know their team will always do their best, and against a side who, technically at least, are not equal to Brentford, we should all enjoy Saturday.

I know, like everyone reading this, it won’t be enjoyable until the whistle goes with a win under our belts. But if Orient do the unthinkable, and win, it won’t be the end of the matter because, as Warburton also points out, it’s just another three points.

If they then continue to the end of the season without dropping a point – highly unlikely – then given the financial backing they have and the spirit that must be in their camp, I’d grudgingly say they deserve it.

But who’s to say Wolves won’t slip up… after all, they won’t win every game.

Jim Levack